Old School RuneScape News

We've loved watching you all get stuck into Group Ironman and enjoying the many ways you've all been working together. We've also been listening to your feedback and have a number of proposed changes, some of which will also apply to non-Group Iron accounts.

The proposals cover:

• Group Storage Expansion
  
• Emergency Teleport Shards
  
• Enter other Player Owned Houses
  
• Teleporting to the homes of other group members
  

Let's dig in deeper and see what they're all about!

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[h2]Group Storage Expansion[/h2]

The Group Storage is a highly popular feature for both regular and Hardcore Group Iron players. The feedback we've received the most is that you all want more of it. We hear you!

We want to offer increased storage space as a reward for completing tasks that are specifically tailored to groups, ensuring that your path feels different to when playing as a non-Iron character. We would therefore like to offer a group task list consisting of things such as:

• Hitting certain individual and group levels
  
• Completing Combat Achievement tiers
  
• Completing Achievement Diaries tiers
  
• Obtaining Quests Points
  
• Various Combat achievements
  

Achieve enough of these goals and your Group Storage could expand from 80 all the way up to 200 slots!

You'll probably accomplish a lot of this through normal Group Ironman play, but with the new system in place, doing so will feel all the more meaningful. Remember that time your group yelled at you for staying at Wintertodt to get to 99, even though you had all the supply crates you wanted? Well, that 99 may now unlock you some storage slots - so it was definitely worth the grind!

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[h2]Emergency Teleport Shards[/h2]

Life in Gielinor is scary - but luckily you can always respawn if something goes horribly wrong. Of course, one particular group has it worse than the rest... we're looking at you, Hardcores!

The following encounters have always been considered 'safe' for regular Hardcore players, but are dangerous deaths for Hardcore Group Iron players:

• Chambers of Xeric (including Challenge Mode)
  
• The Inferno
  
• Pest Control
  
• Barbarian Assault
  

It's become apparent that these encounters can be quite brutal, and it can be hard to escape if you're caught in a bad spot. Perhaps a teammate is not pulling their weight, or someone tripped over a router cable. Regardless of the reason, there's a need for a quick way of teleporting out of such situations.

One solution to this already exists in the Theatre of Blood - namely, Verzik's Crystal Shards. Currently they can be bought for 75k gold and allow you to instantly teleport outside of the theatre. They also let other players use their shard on you to teleport you out, and there will be a setting to toggle whether or not other players are allowed to do this.

We would like to expand the Crystal Shard system so they can be used in other places - specifically, those named above. This means that extremely dangerous places such as the Inferno would have a one-click instant teleport to safety. Additionally, the Crystal will likely be renamed and purchasable from a more accessible location.

Note that these teleports will be usable for all types of accounts, not just Hardcore Group Iron players. However, seeing as there's no punishment for other accounts when they die in these spots, we would like this to be polled only for the affected players.

To those of you who have already conquered these dangers without this safety net - we salute you! No-one will ever be able to take that accomplishment away from you!

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[h2]Player Owned House Additions[/h2]

Enter another player's house remotely

Currently, you can only enter another player's Player Owned House if the owner is home. While that's usually how it works in real life as well, we'd like to offer you the ability to visit a friend's house when they're out and about. Consider it the same as having a spare key to your friend's house! This can only be done if the owner is online and in the same world as you (this is entirely down to tech restrictions).

Our hope is that this makes accessing other player's homes a bit smoother. Of course, as a house owner, you're completely free to lock your house so that no one can enter it without your permission!

We know that a lot of Group Iron players would love a shared house that they can build together. Unfortunately, the tech requirements for this are huge, and we can't really justify the resources when we have so many other projects we want to deliver to you. Many of you have said that you'd like to see Construction level for just one of your team, so this change will at least make it more viable for your team to have one dedicated 'builder'!

Should you be allowed to visit your friend's house if they're not at home? Let us know what you think.


Teleport to group member's house

As a Group Iron player, you may have read the above and wondered "What good is my friend's house if I can't get there easily?". Well, we have the answer!

Because there are many different locations where your house can be, it's unlikely that group member's houses are conveniently grouped together. We would like to offer a way for both regular and Hardcore Group Iron players to redirect their house teleport to a group member's house.

The teleport will likely be accessible via a right click on the Home Teleport spell, as the regular spellbook doesn't have space for any more spells.

As always, we would love to hear what you think of our proposed additions to the game. Once your feedback has been addressed, we'll be ready to poll them.

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We'd love to hear your feedback so please let us know what you think via our official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, the Steam forums or the community-led OSRS Discord.

Mods Arcane, Archie, Argo, Ash, Ayiza, Banjo, Boko, Brow, Bruno, Con, Curse, Daizong, Deagle, Dibber, Ditto, Dylan, Ed, Elena, Ellie, Errol, Fed, Gecko, Grub, Halo, Havik, Hornet, Husky, Jndr, John C, Kandosii, Katies, Kieren, Kirby, KT, Kurotou, Lenny, Light, Lottie, Mack, Matheus, Maylea, Markos, Meat, Morty, Nasty, Nin, Nylu, Oasis, Peppers, Regent, Redfield, Roq, Ry, Sarnie, Sigma, Skylark, Sova, Squid, Steve W, Tide, Veda, Vegard, West, Wolfy & Zuko

The Old School Team

Exciting news - the Android Beta is ready to go! In other news, we’re introducing extra Bank space and a literal Gold Sink!

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[h2]Android Beta[/h2]

Calling all mobile users – it’s time for the Android Beta! A while back we mentioned that we’re bringing some of the awesome features from our Steam Client to mobile, and we needed a few plucky testers to give us their feedback.

Only those with approved access to the Beta client can participate. Even if your app says you're in the Beta, if you've not received an Inbox message from us then unfortunately you do not have access. We will ONLY message players on this subject via their Inbox.

We’re pleased to say that the testers have been selected, and between today (from 14:00 GMT) and December 8th they’ll be trying a range of awesome features:

• Buff Bars
  
• Fishing Spot Indicators
  
• HUD Improvements (NPC Information and Combat Styles)
  
• Agility and Slayer Helpers
  
• Chambers of Xeric Helper
  
• Woodcutting and Ore Respawn Timers
  
• Increased Draw Distance
  
• Navigation Tile Indicators
  
• Chat Improvements
  
• And more!
  

If you missed out on this round, there's still a chance! We may be sending out invites to a second round of applicants at a later date. Again, if you’re successful we will ONLY invite you via the in-game Inbox.

We’ll be using the official OSRS Discord server for all communications throughout the Beta. Accordingly, we’ll be updating the server with all the info you need to get started, including an FAQ and a list of any known issues. Beta invitees will get access to the Mobile Beta channels, which are hidden for everyone else.

If you don’t see these channels right away, be patient – it may take some time for the permissions to kick in. If you still don’t have access after 24 hours, let us know by sending a message to Mod Light#1353 on Discord and we’ll sort it out.

Lastly, please remember that you need an Android device updated to at least 8.0 (Oreo) to participate. If you’re an iOS player, stay tuned for another Beta currently aiming for early 2022.

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[h2]Group Ironman Improvements[/h2]

While you lot have been teaming up to take on Gielinor’s toughest challenge, the J-Mods have been hard at work on some quality of life improvements for Group Ironman Mode.

Firstly, it was previously possibly for a (naughty) group leader to prolong the leaving process of group members by re-initialising their kick request, trapping them in endless 7-day grace period loops. As of this update, that can no longer happen.

On a similar note, removing a member from the group would sometimes cause the leaving message to spam the Chat Box. We’ve fixed this, so you can heartlessly kick your former group members to the curb in peace.

Now the fixes are out of the way, let’s talk features!


Group Chat

This week’s update brings a brand-new Group Chat so you can converse with your fellow group members! This new feature will replace the Trade Chat tab for Group Iron Players – although the existing functionality of this tab for trades, challenge requests, etc will remain the same. We've done this because Group Iron Players don’t typically need to arrange trade requests with those outside their group!

To chat in your new and shiny channel, just prefix your message with either //// or /i.


Loot Broadcasts

This was a very popular request, and we’re happy to announce that it’s now available! Group Iron Players will now receive broadcasts to their group for loot, quest completion, Combat Achievement completion and level milestones!

For those of you who don’t want to hear that your group member just nabbed the drop you’ve been running dry on for weeks, this setting can be toggled on and off in the Settings Menu.

You can also adjust the threshold at which loot is considered valuable enough to broadcast. Any loot stack valued below this threshold will not trigger a broadcast. The cap on this setting is a generous 500 million GP.

There’s also an option to customise your Clan and Group Ironman broadcast colours if you wish!


Group Interface

If you liked the Clan Interface, you’re going to love this, because it’s essentially the same thing but for groups. This shiny new interface displays the following information:

• Group status
  
• Number of players in the group
  
• Number of lives (HCIM only)
  
• Group Prestige
  
• Leader’s name
  
• Creation date
  

To be clear, should you downgrade from a Hardcore Group Iron Man to a regular one (deliberately or otherwise), all related information will be removed from the interface.

You can view the Group Interface as a guest – perfect for checking out a group before you join it.

With this new feature, it’s also possible to report a group’s name by clicking on it in the Group Interface. Panic not, group leaders – you can easily change your name in the interface, too!

Is that it for Group Ironman? Not on your Nelly! This week we’ll be releasing another blog regarding the following topics:

• Group Storage Expansion
  
• Emergency Teleport Shards
  
• Entering and Teleporting to Group Members’ Houses
  

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[h2]A (Literal) Gold Sink, Plus Extra Bank Space![/h2]



You suggested it, we implemented it – there’s now an option to build a ludicrously flashy solid gold sink in your Player Owned House!

The Golden Sink requires 47 Construction to build. You’ll need 10 Condensed Gold, 5 Gold Leaf and 5 Mahogany Planks to construct it.

Condensed Gold, you say? That’s a new material available from the Keldagrim Stonemason Shop for the suitably extravagant price of 10 million GP… each.

We can’t wait to see how many of you actually add the Golden Sink to your Player Owned House. But wait, we haven’t mentioned the best part – it also functions as an actual sink, for all your hand-washing needs! Check out this animation:



On the topic of gold sinks, you can now purchase additional Bank spaces in exchange for GP, as polled earlier this week. To do so, have a word with any Banker.

The increased Bank space is available for both free-to-play players and members. Once purchased, you’ll retain access forever, even if your membership lapses.

Bank space is purchased in sets of 20, with a total of 9 sets available – that’s a whopping 360 extra spaces! Each set costs more than the last, and multiple sets can be purchased in one go if you like.

As mentioned in our Economy Blog, the additional Bank spaces you get for having a PIN and Authenticator set up have increased from 8 to 20.

So, the overall new max size of the Bank is 1,200 spaces. Not bad at all! Here’s the rundown of the numbers:



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[h2]Gielinor Gazette: Postbag and Player Created Content Submissions[/h2]

The last Gielinor Gazette of the year is in its planning stages, and as always, we're looking for YOUR submissions to the Player Created Content and Postbag From the Hedge sections!

If you're not familiar, the Player Created Content section is where you can show off all the amazing, creative, Old School-related things you've been up to. Art, sculpture, turnip carving, fanfiction - if you've created it, we want to hear about it!

The Postbag From the Hedge, on the other hand, is your opportunity to write to any of Old School RuneScape's colourful cast of characters and ask your most pressing questions. Whether you want to know the deepest lore about the God Wars, or the Duke of Lumbridge's favourite snack (cake, obviously), this is your chance to find out!

You can submit your letters and creations in this Reddit thread. We can't wait to see what you lot come up with!

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[h2]In Other News[/h2]

Players with free entry to the Wilderness Resource Area are no longer asked whether they really want to enter after clicking on the door.
Corrected grammar in the Big Chompy Bird Hunting Quest Journal.
Players can now fletch in the Hallowed Sepulchre without interrupting movement.
As players can be teleported into the Lava Maze while they’re unprepared to slash the web barriers around the exit, a couple of Knife spawns have been added to the Maze.


Additional Chat Mode

Speaking of, we know that remembering all those different chat modes is becoming increasingly frustrating, so we’ve added a new feature to make it easier. The Additional Chat Mode lets you talk in a given channel without a prefix, while still seeing game messages in the ‘All’ tab.

Try the following commands to see how it works:

/@f - Set mode to Friends Chat
/@c - Set mode to Clan
/@g - Set mode to Guest
/@i - Set mode to Group Chat (GIM only)
/@p - Set mode to Public

You can also change the mode by right clicking the appropriate channel and selecting ‘Set Chat Mode’. If you’re tired of typing commands, there’s also a new setting called ‘Chatbox Mode – Set Automatically’ in the Chat section of the Settings Menu. When enabled, it’ll automatically change your chat mode upon typing a message into that chat.

For example, typing /p, /f, /c, or /g will do the same thing as typing /@p, /@f, /@c, or /@g.

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[h2]PvP World Rota[/h2]

The PvP rota has moved to Period B:

• 560 - (UK) - PvP World
  
• 579 - (US) - High-Risk PvP World
  
• 561 - (UK) - Free-to-Play PvP World
  
• 580 - (US) - LMS Competitive
  

World 390 (AUS) for LMS Competitive has been de-activated with this rota.

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That's everything for this week's game update. We'd love to hear your feedback so please let us know what you think via our official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, the Steam forums or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

Mods Arcane, Archie, Argo, Ash, Ayiza, Banjo, Boko, Brow, Bruno, Con, Curse, Daizong, Deagle, Dibber, Ditto, Dylan, Ed, Elena, Ellie, Errol, Fed, Gecko, Grub, Halo, Havik, Hornet, Husky, Jndr, John C, Kandosii, Katies, Kieren, Kirby, KT, Kurotou, Lenny, Light, Lottie, Mack, Matheus, Maylea, Markos, Meat, Morty, Nasty, Nin, Nylu, Oasis, Peppers, Regent, Redfield, Roq, Ry, Sarnie, Sigma, Skylark, Sova, Squid, Steve W, Tide, Veda, Vegard, West, Wolfy & Zuko

The Old School Team

This week we've got some short-term changes heading for the Duel Arena, along with an Android Beta update for you Mobile adventurers.

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[h2]Duel Arena Changes: Short-term Measures[/h2]

Last month we discussed our plans to replace the Duel Arena with a something new, and promised to restrict its existing form in the short term. That promise will be delivered in this week’s update with the introduction of several measures to reduce the Duel Arena's harmfulness.

First of all, we’ve set a stake limit of 10 million GP per player, per duel. The value is the same for both members and free-to-play accounts.

Additionally, we’ve added two new presets based on settings that players commonly use for ‘whip’ and ‘boxing’ duels. Neither preset forces you to use particular weapons – for example, the ‘whip’ presets allow you to equip any one-handed weapon, not just whips. The idea here is to make it easier to see whether you’ve got the duel options you expected – and in turn, make scamming more difficult.

Our long-term solution will arrive in 2022, when we’ll be replacing the Duel Arena with something more engaging and enjoyable. We’ll share more information closer to launch!

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[h2]Android Beta[/h2]

We’re making loads of backend changed to prepare for next week’s Android Beta test! A big thanks to everyone who has already signed up via the Android Beta form.

Please remember that successful applicants will only be contacted through their account mailbox. Be aware of potential mobile phishing scams! If in any doubt, please do reach out to us. We don't bite (much...).

Should you be one of the lucky players who’s made it into the Beta, you’ll need an Android device that has been updated to Android Version 8.0 (Oreo) or above in order to participate.

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[h2]Hotfixes and Improvements [/h2]


Since last week's game update, we've released a number of hotfixes:

• The Gauntlet and Corrupted Gauntlet are not intended to be 'safe' for Hardcore Group Iron Players, and this has been rectified.
  
• Group Iron Players who’ve recently left their group were able to teleport to the mainland without joining or forming a new one. We’ve made a change to prevent this and teleported those sneaky Group Iron players back to the Node.
  
• Fixed a Last Man Standing bug where poison effects were cleared upon passing the barrier.
  
• Small blighted food drops from revenant monsters will no longer drop noted while wearing the Amulet of Avarice.

This week’s update also brings the following improvements:

• Players can no longer attack the Tempoross Fishing spots.
  
• The Collection Log entry for Penance Gloves will now update on login and when opening the Log.
  
• The messages sent when drinking alcoholic beverages (in game!) have been added to the spam filter.
  
• Players who run out of time in the Hallowed Sepulchre will no longer be sent back to the lobby prematurely when finishing a floor.
  
• Fixed an issue where the word ‘null’ was appearing in shop menus for mobile users.
  
• Corrected capitalisation errors in the Spellbook side-panel.
  
• You now need 4 Firemaking or greater to place a lit candle in an empty candle lantern.
  
• The names of various monkey bones have been changed to reflect which kind of ape they’re from, so that players can easily track what they’re handing over to Zooknock.

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[h2]Merch Store Update[/h2]

We hate to say it, but Christmas is on its way – luckily, we’ve got a bumper harvest of Old School merch to add to your wishlist!



Firstly, our Black Friday Promo launches today! While stocks last, you can get your hands on a free Black Fire Cape Keyring with orders over £30, $45, or €45. You’ll also get free shipping on all orders over £80, $100, or €90.

Of course, we’ve got loads of awesome gifts for the holidays including limited restocks of commemorative anniversary lines, including the main edition of RuneScape: The First 20 Years and the special gold pressing of the Original Soundtrack Classics vinyl.

Feeling the chill? Then bundle up warm with the dangerously toasty Elvarg Christmas Jumper! Cabin Boy Jenkins would’ve loved this. Probably.

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[h2]Angels Scapes[/h2]



There’s also a fantastic range of new Christmas and Black Friday lines from Angels Scapes! Party like it’s 2001 with the Mini Party Hats Pin Set and the limited-edition Xmas Cracker Pin Lucky Grab, which comes in red, yellow, and white variants.

Alternatively, check out the limited-edition Xmas King Black Dragon and Jester Baroo pins – the latter of which is a collab with the amazing Prezleek!

Lastly, make sure to grab the limited-edition Black Friday Spirit Shield Set! The sigils glow in the dark – that’s how you know they’re magic! Or cursed. Probably the first thing.

Check out the store for more details

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[h2]RuneScape: The First 20 Years [/h2]



It’s HERE! We are loving seeing your reactions to receiving this absolute slab of RuneScapey knowledge now that it’s out in the wild.

We have, however, heard reports that some retailers are already out of stock! If this is the case for you, be sure to search online for other stores that might still have copies. If you can wait a little longer, we know that UK retailers will be receiving new stock in the next 10 days.

The Deluxe Edition, meanwhile, should have shipped to US and Canadian customers last week. Unfortunately, technical issues have meant that the merch store has been unable to send out tracking numbers by email. If you have not yet received your copy from the Official Merch Store, reach out to BSI Customer Service at [email protected] for tracking info.

And if you’ve been living under a rock and are only just hearing about the book, you can learn more about it here!

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[h2]PvP World Rota [/h2]

The PvP rota has moved to Period A:

• 539 - (US) - PvP World
  
• 548 - (Germany) - High-Risk PvP World
  
• 577 - (US) - Free-to-Play PvP World
  
• 559 - (UK) - LMS Competitive
  
• 390 - (AUS) - LMS Competitive - world becomes active with this rota.

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That's everything for this week's game update. We'd love to hear your feedback so please let us know what you think via our official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, the Steam forums or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

Mods Arcane, Archie, Argo, Ash, Ayiza, Banjo, Boko, Brow, Bruno, Con, Curse, Daizong, Deagle, Dibber, Ditto, Dylan, Ed, Elena, Ellie, Errol, Fed, Gecko, Grub, Halo, Havik, Hornet, Husky, Jndr, John C, Kandosii, Katies, Kieren, Kirby, KT, Kurotou, Lenny, Light, Lottie, Mack, Matheus, Maylea, Markos, Meat, Morty, Nasty, Nin, Nylu, Oasis, Peppers, Regent, Redfield, Roq, Ry, Sarnie, Sigma, Skylark, Sova, Squid, Steve W, Tide, Veda, Vegard, West, Wolfy & Zuko

The Old School Team

The Club doors are open once again! Premier Club is Old School RuneScape's best Membership offer, and it will be available again soon!

Between November 15th and March 1st, you’ll be able to save loads on Old School Membership.

Premier Club offers 12 months of RuneScape Membership at an incredible price - that means you'll only pay £49.99/€64.99/$69.99 for access to everything Old School has to offer. That compares to £62.99 for our normal annual package!

Make sure you're all set for 2022 as we've got an exciting year lined up! Not only can you look forward to the return of Nex as the Frozen Door opens after nearly eight years, but something stirs in the sands... it's time to return to the Kharidian Desert in Old Schools' third raid! And that's just the start...

Get all the benefits of Membership for less including:

• Explore the entire Gielinor map
  
• Enjoy 8 additional skills
  
• Access to every single quest in the game
  
• Extra Bank slots
  
• Better gear, more teleports, more minigames
  
• And much, much more!

So what are you waiting for? Grab yourself a bargain and settle in for a fantastic year of Old School adventure!

[h2]JOIN THE PREMIER CLUB TODAY![/h2]

The Old School Team

Bet you weren't expecting to see the Gazette back in November! Well, when we said monthly, we meant it.

This time we've got updates on Nex, Group Ironman and more! Plus, there's a slew of new player-created content and replies to some of your letters in the latest Postbag from the Hedge.

Let's get going!

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[h2]Project Status Update[/h2]


Leagues III: Shattered Relics

We recently announced that Leagues III: Shattered Relics will launch in January 2022. This third incarnation of Leagues will run from January 19th - March 2nd. As we near completion of the project, Shattered Relics has finished the balancing phase of development and the team have been working on the fantastic new rewards, which we can't wait for you to get your hands on!


Group Ironman

Group Ironman is finally here! It's been a tremendous launch and we're absolutely thrilled with the response from you all! It's been positively heartwarming to watch groups of friends, strangers and colleagues making their way through Gielinor together. At the moment, we're working through player feedback. While our immediate priority is fixing errors, we also want to improve some existing features. Here's what we're looking at right now:

• Group Storage Space - Is it coming? Absolutely! We want to increase the storage capacity for you, but we haven't quite decided how the Storage should work. For example, how should it be unlocked? Mod Elena is currently working on a design for the Group Storage feature, which we are eager to present to you in the coming weeks! In the meantime, please send us your ideas!
  
• Group Chat and Group Broadcasts - Many of you have asked us to make a private chat channel specifically for your group, and we're working on adding this in the coming weeks. It will work similarly to Clan Chat. We'd love to know what shortcuts you think would be useful for this new channel. We're also going to implement the broadcast system that we currently use for Clans; this will mean that you can opt-in to receiving notifications when a member of the group receives significant loot or achieves a major milestone. Finally, you'll have the equivalent of the Clan Interface with lots of important info. This feature will also allow you to report any inappropriate group names that you may come across.
  
• Shared Group Hall - We're aware there’s a huge demand for a shared Player Owned House for groups or, failing that, a customisable instance that can be shared and upgraded. As we've mentioned previously, we wouldn't be able to replicate the entire functionality of a POH, due to the way its code currently works. We have been involved in some discussion and design work to see how it might be possible to create a customisable instance with various popular construction tools. After careful review of your feedback and the work involved, we felt that this project would come at the cost of delivering other improvements to the Group Ironman, as well as the main game moving forwards. Therefore, we've decided to put a hold on this project but that doesn't mean we can't give you something in it's place. What we'd like to do with POH is allow players to enter their group mate's POH as long as they're online in the same world. As always let us know your feedback as we're operating on this basis with your interests in mind.

Steam Client Features

We released our third round of new features for the client recently, adding XP tracking, respawn timers for trees and rocks, the Slayer Helper and much more. We're really happy with the progress made and the feedback we're getting. The focus is currently on addressing the most urgent issues before looking at the fourth set of features.

For those waiting on the updates for Mobile, we haven't got a solid release date just yet, but we can confirm there will be a Beta period between November 24th and December 8th! You’ll be able to test out awesome features like:

• Buff Bars
  
• Fishing Spot Indicators
  
• HUD Improvements (NPC Information & Combat Styles)
  
• Agility & Slayer Helpers
  
• Chambers of Xeric Helper
  
• Woodcutting & Ore Respawn Timers
  
• Increased Draw Distance
  
• Navigation Tile Indicators
  
• Chat Improvements
  
• And more!

This will be a big improvement to the Mobile experience and we want to make sure we're doing it right, so please sign up for the Beta if you are interested! Successful applicants will only be contacted through their account mailbox. Please be wary of potential phishing scams.


Tombs of Amascut

We want to thank everyone that participated in the most recent Rewards Beta, and confirm that we've worked our way through your feedback. There's no direct update on Tombs of Amascut just yet, but the team are currently discussing the rewards, so expect to hear more in the near future. As for other development news, progress is going well and prototypes are being built for some of the challenge rooms!


Beneath Cursed Sands

For anyone not aware, Beneath Cursed Sands is the next quest in the Kharidian Desert storyline and is planned for release in 2022. The quest is currently in pre-production, and we expect to poll it alongside the Tombs of Amascut very soon. Not much has changed since we last spoke about this project, but we do have a small amendment to share on the requirements. Previously we said the quest would require 55 Smithing, but this has been changed to 55 Crafting.

With Beneath Cursed Sands, we're going to be finishing off the coastline in the south east corner of the Kharidian Desert. With this, we want to respect the lore and thematics established for that area in 2008 whilst also making some tweaks to fit our upcoming plans... no spoilers, but here's a peek at some concept art.

Concept Art from Beneath Cursed Sands.

Nex

Nex is fully in development and the team has been working hard to bring this iconic God Wars boss to Old School. The boss fight is up and running so the focus is now on making tweaks and balancing changes so it suits Old School.

Following the recent Rewards Beta, we've published an updated Nex Rewards blog with all the changes to the original items. This includes:

• Torva Armour being introduced instead of Virtus Armour
  
• The Zaryte Crossbow to take the place of the Zaryte Bow
  
• Changes to the Special Attack of the Ancient Godsword

To recap the blog: the Virtus Armour got positive feedback generally, so we aren’t scrapping it altogether. We’d still like to introduce it as a reward a little later down the line, and with a few tweaks based on your feedback. You might remember that our original plans were to release Torva later on as well. With the changes in this blog, we now think Virtus would be a suitable reward for a later update.

We've also added some more information about the Blood Essence. Give it a read and let us know what you think of the latest changes!

A WIP image of the furnace inside the prison.

Wilderness Changes

The first batch of Revenant Cave changes recently went live. It’s regrettable that we haven’t yet been able to bring you features like Loot Keys and Wilderness Bosses, but they are going to be very exciting when they do arrive. Unfortunately, these will now not appear in-game until 2022, for which we apologise.

Other features, however, are already being looked into. The next update from this batch will include the Wilderness Slayer Caves improvements and the introduction of a PJ Timer throughout the Wilderness (for both players and NPCs). We don’t yet have a concrete date for these, but we’ll update you as soon as we have any news.


Deadman Re-Run

In a recent blog we stated that it's likely we'll be able to re-run Deadman Reborn. We also confirmed that we've begun work on a solution that will improve our mitigation against direct network attacks, which is due to be ready early next year. With this in mind, we'd like to schedule a Beta for the re-run sometime around January, with the full re-run to follow shortly after.

We'll provide a firm date closer to the completion of the necessary work. It's important we highlight that while we're confident in our solution, there is of course a chance that unexpected problems will crop up - and should this happen, they'll need fixing before we can officially re-run the finals. Your patience is hugely appreciated.


Old School Economy

Last week, we also talked about the Old School Economy and our efforts to help it by hiring some actual real world economists to help us! Our finding included:

• A Grand Exchange Tax of 2% that would be removed from the final sale value. This applies to the seller and not the buyer.
  
• An Item Sink, using the money gained from the Grand Exchange Tax, that 'buys' items from players and then deletes them. The list of items is something we are looking to expand with your help, but at the moment it looks something like this:
  
  • Spectral and Arcane Shields
    
  • Nightmare Staff and Orbs
    
  • Twisted Bow, Elder Maul, Kodai Insignia, Dinh's Bulwark, Prayer Reward Scrolls
    
  • God Swords, Armadyl Armour, Bandos Armour, Saradomin Sword, Zamorakian Spear
    
  • Abyssal Bludgeon
    
  • Kraken Tentacle, Trident
    
  • Dark Bow
    
  • Smoke Battlestaff, Occult Necklace
    
  • Toxic Blowpipe
• A literal Gold Sink that you can place inside your Played-Owned House! It will be the single most expensive item to build inside of it.
  
• And last but certainly not least, Additional Bank spaces at the following prices:

We hope that this is the start of getting our economy in a more stable place! With your help, it's a process that will continue to evolve.

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[h2]Leagues III: Shattered Relics - Development Process[/h2]

by Mod Flippy & Oasis

Leagues III: Shattered Relics may have been pushed back to January 19th, but that doesn't stop us peering behind the development curtain to see what's going on!
With the first two Leagues both using an area unlock mechanic, we wanted to try something new for Shattered Relics.
Despite a lot of brainstorming, we were struggling to come up with an idea that worked, so instead opted for the Fenkenstrain approach - that is, taking the best aspects of the ideas we'd had and blending them together to form a single concept.
One of the themes that really stood out was trading cards, with each card representing a fraction of a Relic's overall power that, when combined, resulted in larger and more powerful effects. The great thing about this idea is that it essentially takes Relics and widens the playing field. Instead of being stuck with a handful of extremely strong Relics for the duration of the League, players instead have numerous weaker but freely interchangeable Fragments that encourage experimentation.

This slight tweak to the formula is a big switch from previous Leagues, but also familiar enough to players so as to be a recognisably 'Leagues' experience.

As you can imagine, putting a League together is no small task, but luckily the team is absolutely fantastic - everyone's willing to get stuck in and solve problems collaboratively. The OGs have only existed as a team for around half a year, but we’re so solid it feels like we’ve been working together for years.

Development was helped by the early creation of what's known as a 'vertical slice' - this essentially means building a small section of the League that's fully fleshed out and feature-complete. So while narrow, it's very deep! The team did an incredible job - in fact, we were blown away by how fantastically it all came together, and even the early builds were hard to put down!

Getting up and running so quickly meant we were able to start playtesting very early, giving us lots of opportunity for balance changes and design tweaks. This also meant that a few urgent changes lurking in the design phase were identified very early on.

One of the biggest lessons we've learned while creating Shattered Relics is the importance of a design that's achievable within a reasonable timeframe. Given an unlimited amount of time, we could have a League with hundreds of Fragments that spans every piece of content across the entire map, but in reality that’s not possible. The real challenge has been to create a diverse and interesting range of Fragments within the time available and ensuring we can get the League out the door. Considering this from the beginning really sets you up for success down the line.

This also applies to the rewards. Leagues is played by all types of players: maxed accounts, new players and everyone in between. Everyone should have a reward worth working towards that they can make good use of when the Leagues are over. That’s why the rewards for this League range from decent early gear to things you’ll use all the way to the end game. An example is the Cannon, which is what we call a 'hero weapon'. You can get it early on in an account's life and make use of it throughout the entire game... provided you can afford to maintain it!

A lot of big steps were taken to make this League feel special, new and refreshing. We hope this is reflected in your experience and that you can create many stories and memories together!

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[h2]Old School's Ins and Outs[/h2]

We've had two J-Mods sadly leave us last month, as we say goodbye to both Mod Flippy and Mod Sween. However, we've got a new member of the team to introduce you to in the form of Mod Hornet, so make sure to give them a warm welcome!

Sadly we've said goodbye to Mod Sween (and his incredible lockdown hair) after more than six awesome years. Here's a snippet of what he had to say:

I don't have any profound parting words but I'd just like to say this. Thank you so much, everybody. It's been wonderful, even when it hasn't been. Passions can run high when you're so emotionally invested in something, and that's so true for our community and Old School. I challenge you to channel that passion in a positive way!

Celebrate your fellow community members - you might disagree but it's a shared love for the game that unites you. Support your J-Mods. I've said it before, but beneath the gold crown is a dedicated player, just like you.

You can read his full leaving message and follow his new adventures at @Alec_Sween.


Meanwhile, Mod Flippy leaves this parting message:

It’s been an absolute honour working for such a special game, together with this talented and passionate dev team and incredibly dedicated community. I’ve been fortunate enough to experience something many only dream of, and I’ll hold my time here dear to my heart forever.

Thank you for all your suggestions, warm comments, ideas and spicy conversations throughout my time here. I’d say I’m going to miss you, but I’ll still be around posting memes as usual.

Working on all three Leagues has been such a journey and I can’t wait to experience many future Leagues as a player. I was considering making a joke about Last Recalling back to Sweden, but I’ll save you the cringe.

I have nothing but love for the game and team. Thank you for making my time here incredibly special.

Mod Flippy - @flip_2_dip


Incoming Mod alert! Mod Hornet has joined as a Junior QA Analyst.

Hello Everyone!

My name is Mod Hornet and I have recently joined the Jagex Junior QA Analyst team through the government kickstart scheme. I’m a recent Computer Game Design graduate, though I started my game career journey back in 2016, working myself through an NQ after deciding to shift my career path from legal services to a more creative and dynamic outlet: game development!

My interests and hobbies are quite varied and include BJD customisation, where I repaint dolls I find at charity shops before rehoming them. I also got my awesome future granny skills in crocheting cute amigurumis, and obviously playing video games.

I want to thank everyone for being so welcoming so far. I’m excited to be part of the team at Jagex and can’t wait to start contributing!

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[h2]Postbag from the Hedge[/h2]

Hello adventurers! It’s me, Postie Pete, back again with another selection of questions and answers from all over Gielinor. Once again I’ve been all over the place, from Mount Karuulm to West Ardougne. Let’s see what I’ve got in my bag!

To the Tasakaal

Dearest Kaal-Mej-San, Kaal-Ket-Jor and Kaal-Xil-Dar,

I understand that what I've done for you so far is truly nothing in the grand scheme of things, but I hope it is enough for you to trust me with the answer to the following question:

How were you three capable of traversing from Mor Ul Rek to Mount Karuulm? From what I know from the TzHaar of Mor Ul Rek, exiting the volcano brings your kind to a deadly low temperature. That's not even counting the fact that there's an entire ocean between here and there!

Your friend, Zacflame

(Note to Pete: It is extremely hot down there, be careful!)

Human,

Your understanding is correct. We will answer still.

We chose our new purpose long ago.

Eons ago.

When the ocean was only a stream.

When this world did not sprawl.

And was quiet.

Many things have changed.

But the balance remains the same.

(You weren’t kidding, Zacflame! Luckily these old bones are tough. Onto the next letter!)

[hr][/hr]
To Altarkiz

To Altarkiz,

Is it true that you're a Bedabin Nomad? Why have you come so far from the desert? What are you concentrating on? Are you enjoying your trip?

From Deztv

Huh?

Oh, yes, I'm from the desert. Haris and I signed up with Captain Tock's crew because we were looking for some real adventure. As soon as I'm done meditating by counting these blades of grass, we can get back to it! I'm on number 25,921. Or was it 25,922? Uh oh...

Altarkiz

[hr][/hr]

To Death

To the esteemed Harold Death Esq.,

How is Nieve getting along? I hope she is coming to terms with her new environment and she treats Muncher well. Let her know I sent Glough her way.

Kind Regards, Ingus Wraith

Dear Ingus Wraith,

Nieve? I’m afraid she moved out of my jurisdiction long ago. One moment – I’ll contact my colleague and see if he can provide some insight.

Hmm. I see.

It seems your friend has been doing valuable work in the land of souls. The servants of The Devourer cower in her presence! I imagine that’s a great weight off my colleague’s shoulders.

And although I’d rather not speculate on the affairs of the dead, I should think this Glough person is in for a world of trouble.

Yours,

Harold Death Esq.

(And Muncher)

[hr][/hr]
To Dusuri

Dear Dusuri,

Lately I've really been getting into hunting down those mysterious hunks of space rock that fall from the sky every so often. It's quite fun tracking them down and chatting with the other adventurers that come across them. The rewards you provide in exchange for the dust from these rocks is certainly a nice incentive; These golden duds are quite stylish, and I've had no trouble keeping stocked up on gems for my adventuring needs thanks to you.

I have to ask though, what do you do with all that stardust? Us human adventurers can't do anything with it on its own, but you claim to specialise in the stuff. I'm just curious what's so useful about this dust that you're willing to part with so many precious gemstones to acquire more of it?

Take care! I'll see you next time I've got more stardust for you.

From Cambria Bold

Dear Cambria Bold,

Glad to hear you’ve been enjoying tracking down those meteors! You’ve saved me and the others a lot of hard work. The kit is nice and shiny, isn’t it? I’ll let Belona know you’re a fan. She smithed it all herself, you know.

Stardust? I study it! It’s packed full of minerals from, well, you know – other worlds. I’ve got this special tool that looks a bit like a reverse telescope, and it lets me get a closer look at the particles that make up the Stardust. The bits and pieces it contains were born in the hearts of dying stars and paint a picture of the universe from its earliest moments. Then it’s just a matter of comparing them to the regular dust we get here in the mines! It's amazing to think that everything - from distant worlds to the dinner on your plate or the cat on the mat - is built from the very same stuff. It humbles me and reminds me that our problems really aren't so big... in the grand scheme of things, at least.

You take care too. I’ll be waiting!

Your friend,

Dusuri

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To the Bards of Varlamore

Dear Reshi, Thomdril and Kendall,

When I was last visiting Kourend, journeying out of Kingstown, I couldn't help but overhear the lovely music echoing throughout your camp. I stopped by and we spoke briefly. You informed me of your travels from the kingdom to the south, and how you were students of the College of Bards.

I wonder if you could tell me a bit more about that? What's the college like? Do many bards come from or pass through there? What's your favourite thing about the place? And what's life like as a bard? I've yet to visit the city of Tempestus where the College resides, but I’ve heard good things.

I must say, I'm quite jealous of your musical talent. I did once try to put on a show for the Fremennik people using their preferred instrument, but I must confess that I resorted to performance-enhancing magic to make up for my lack of skill. Shameful, I know.

Perhaps one day I'll visit the College and get the right tutoring to properly learn the ways of the bard.

Yours sincerely,

GentleTractor

Dear GentleTractor,

Hey, we remember you! Always nice to hear from a fan.

The College is just lovely. I’ve many happy memories from my time there, learning new instruments, memorising the great ballads… nights out in Tempestus… if you’re ever in Varlamore, it’s well worth a visit.

Bards come from all over the world to study there and visit the library. Often they bring their own contributions. That’s what being a bard is all about – travelling the world with your companions and finding new stories to write. Or making up your own.

There’s no shame in a bit of stage fright. Being a bard isn’t easy, and if those Fremenniks were anything like the ones I’ve met, you had some tough competition.

The college is open to everyone with a story to tell… and it sounds like you’ve got quite a few, so I’m sure you’ll fit right in. Maybe we’ll see you there when we’re done with our tour?

See you around,

Reshi

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To theDrill Demon

Dear Drill Sergeant,

You look ripped. What's your workout regimen? Do you think Alathazdrar the demon butler could outrun you?

Sincerely, Fruitbooting.

Atteeeeeeeeen-shun!

Private Fruitbooting! You’d have a better grip on the fundamentals of fitness if you actually attended our training sessions! Star jumps! Sit-ups! Push-ups! Jogging! That’s all you need to achieve peak physical health!

As for Alathazdrar – that noodle-limbed ninny couldn’t outrun a snail, and if he has a problem with that he can take it up with me!

Now – drop and give me five! Lest you end up like your muscle-less pal here!

[hr][/hr]

To Postie Pete (oh... that's me!)

To Postie Pete,

I've seen you on many of your routes delivering your letters. One thing I was curious about was your top secret visit to the Wilderness's Bandit Camp. What were you doing there?! You acted quite suspiciously, especially when you said the Chaos Elemental was behind me and vanished. What are you hiding?

Sincerely, Venomous.

Sorry, Venomous – if I had ears, they’d still be ringing from all that shouting! What’s this about camping?

The Bandit Camp? In the Wilderness?

Oh, er – golly, look at this! There’s one more letter left in the bag. Let’s forget all this secret mission nonsense and have a look.

[hr][/hr]

To Whom It May Concern

You can give cats to citizens in West Ardougne in exchange for Death Runes. The citizens claim that they use the cats to hunt rats in the area. The players believe that the cats are eaten by the citizens. Which is it?

Yours, Mod Zuko

Dear Mod Zuko,

First of all, how dare the gossipy goblins of Gielinor spread such horrible rumours about our poor, impoverished town? We might live in a plague-infested slum, but we still have our principles! We love cats here in West Ardougne. They might keep themselves to themselves, but we assure you, our cats are hale, healthy, and busy whittling down the mouse population. We’ve hardly had anyone die of the plague lately, and it’s all thanks to our beloved moggies.

Frankly, we are appalled at this accusation, and invite any adventurer who wishes to see how kindly we treat our cats to explore our community-led cat café once it opens to the public.

Yours,

Siv Illian, on behalf of the West Ardougne Cat Appreciation Society


That's all from Postie Pete for now! There will be a new Reddit thread soon where you can submit letters for the next Gazette, so keep your eyes out for that!

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[h2]Player Creation Showcase[/h2]

We're back with another batch of your biggest and best pieces of creative work! Every individual featured in the Gazette will receive six months of free membership as thanks for their superb efforts, so keep an eye on the linked social accounts inbox for more details on how to grab your reward!

If you are looking to be featured in the next Gazette then make sure to submit your creations through our Player Showcase Gallery Form and state what Gazette you would like it to feature in. We look forward to seeing more of your incredible talents!

Anavana

BradySkirts

Snoopii_

CharmChi

GlassMachine

Print3DGB

Zulrah Animation by 7TVFX

We've also got this fantastic Shreadsheet made by JonesyMate perfect for tracking your Group Ironman team's progress:

Check It Out Here!

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That's everything for the return of the Gielinor Gazette. We'd love to hear your feedback on the newest edition and as with everything else, if you’ve got any ideas about the sorts of things you’d like to see in upcoming editions of the Gielinor Gazette, then please do let us know via our official forums, on the 2007Scape Reddit, the Steam forums or the community-led OSRS Discord in the #gameupdate channel.

Mods Arcane, Archie, Argo, Ash, Ayiza, Banjo, Boko, Brow, Bruno, Con, Curse, Daizong, Deagle, Dibber, Ditto, Dylan, Ed, Elena, Ellie, Errol, Fed, Gecko, Grub, Halo, Havik, Hornet, Husky, Jndr, John C, Kandosii, Katies, Kieren, Kirby, KT, Kurotou, Lenny, Light, Lottie, Mack, Matheus, Maylea, Markos, Meat, Morty, Nasty, Nin, Nylu, Oasis, Peppers, Regent, Redfield, Roq, Ry, Sarnie, Sigma, Skylark, Sova, Squid, Steve W, Tide, Veda, Vegard, West, Wolfy & Zuko

The Old School Team